Opinion: BlackBerry on the beach? Keep gadgets sand-free and have an iRest
Andy Merrett writes…
A recently published survey suggests that a third of Britons take their BlackBerrys and laptops on holiday with them, with three-quarters taking a work telephone call and 60% sending a work-related email.
I think we all know that total rest and relaxation on holiday is important, but our ever more connected world means that it can be tempting, or even expected, that we’re contactable even when on annual leave.
I for one, though, will be keeping my gadgets well and truly away from the beach.
For one, it’s far too expensive and slow to connect to the Internet when away from home.
Secondly, I’m not going to be happy if sand or saltwater gets into my expensive gadgets, and so they’ll be staying far away from the beach.
However, as I prepare for my holiday next week, I have a nagging feeling that I’m going to miss my technological comforts.
How am I going to cope for a week without the Internet? Am I going to find myself sneaking round British coastal towns wondering why there aren’t as many Internet cafés as candy-floss stalls?
How will I cope not knowing what my friends on Facebook are doing?
I suppose I could always try “getting a life”. No, not a Second Life. After all, I can still vaguely remember life before the Internet, when social networks were real, holidays didn’t involve being near a power socket, and when you left work on the Friday before your holiday, you knew you’d left that world far behind.
Happy days…
